Author Topic: An idea - Statute of Limitations on all Bounties.  (Read 1205 times)

goldenelvensorceress

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An idea - Statute of Limitations on all Bounties.
« on: December 28, 2018, 06:08:26 PM »
Its just an idea I had.

What if all bounties places in game had a Statute of Limitations?

Whats that?
Its a RL thing where Statutes of limitations are laws passed by legislative bodies in common law systems to set the maximum time after an event within which legal proceedings may be initiated.

What does that mean for POTM? What if every bounty posted had a Statute of Limitations. A time after which the bounty would be automatically NULL AND VOID. It would of course be a long time. 2 RL months really.

This would Balance the need for Characters to be accountable, but yet avoid having your character be stuck with a bounty forever.

APorg

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Re: An idea - Statute of Limitations on all Bounties.
« Reply #1 on: December 28, 2018, 06:17:14 PM »
Lifting bounties should be done IC, not through some OOC mechanism that can be exploited. It won't happen.
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a peasant and his pitchfork

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Re: An idea - Statute of Limitations on all Bounties.
« Reply #2 on: December 28, 2018, 06:19:39 PM »
Doesn't exactly make much sense. Not like the Burgomaster's guard in Vallaki would have such a modern concept in mind when drafting bounties. I don't think there's any need to make it easier to escape a bounty either. It's not particularly hard to leave whatever municipality you've accrued a bounty in and hide elsewhere, and frankly, if you've managed to accrue a bounty there should be some weight to that. Knowing that you just have to hide x amount of time before you could pop back to wherever you were booted out of would just continue to water down the consequences of breaking the laws/customs of the land your character is in.
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TheFury

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Re: An idea - Statute of Limitations on all Bounties.
« Reply #3 on: December 28, 2018, 06:27:08 PM »
People have this tendency to dodge consequences by not logging in for months after they do something bounty worthy and giving it no opportunity to have an effect.

Besides, these are feudal governments that are not easily placated. The mere fact someone can be wanted dead with no trial means any idea like a statute of limitations is entirely foreign. The character has made the bed, and they have to lay in it until they find some way of getting the bounty lifted. Bribe the right guard, help a powerful individual with the right connections--they're all valuable RP opportunities a statute would remove.

And regarding the timespan, the USA requires 5 years to pass. 2 months is ridiculously short. Actions in the mists have consequences, and being able to wait it out OOC is ridiculous and in bad form. I'm not saying that's what anyone suggesting it intends to do, but I've seen it happen before with non-bounty issues.
« Last Edit: December 28, 2018, 06:29:06 PM by TheFury »
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PrimetheGrime

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Re: An idea - Statute of Limitations on all Bounties.
« Reply #4 on: December 28, 2018, 06:46:44 PM »
On top of that, 2 months is honestly nothing. There are people that have had bounties for years and survived.

Wholesome Memester

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Re: An idea - Statute of Limitations on all Bounties.
« Reply #5 on: December 28, 2018, 06:47:28 PM »
I like that being condemned to banishment to the mist camp is considered punishment enough that suggestions like this are imposed. Not to be too flippant to the OP, but if it bothers you on some level then the bounty system is working just fine and it's a way for the world reacts to you without needing a DM.

Destinysdesire

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Re: An idea - Statute of Limitations on all Bounties.
« Reply #6 on: December 28, 2018, 06:50:34 PM »
I agree, I would not want to see this implemented, be creative, contact a DM and say hey, I wanna try going over the Garda's head to the Burgomaster to see if I can settle it without them...or...bring in a higher bounty, or communicate ICly with the Lance Corporal....or surrender? Lots of options.

Legion XXI

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Re: An idea - Statute of Limitations on all Bounties.
« Reply #7 on: December 28, 2018, 07:14:24 PM »
So I don't think this is a good idea for a lot of the reasons outlined by other people.  The fact that you can just stop playing the PC and let things time-out with no risk to yourself defeats the point IMO.

But also, since we're making the "real life" comparison, I think it's important to point out that "Statute of Limitations" is being incorrectly represented here in a number of ways.  The concept is that crimes have a certain time in which you can "charge" someone - like, cops can't witness someone speeding and then go try to issue them a ticket for it 70 years down the road.  A lot of serious crimes  (like human trafficking, sexual assault, and murder) don't have a statute of limitations at all.  You can charge someone 100 years after the fact and you're still good.  It's different for different categories of crimes.  Furthermore, it's just the time limit on STARTING legal action against a person.  If you've already charged them and acquired a warrant (essentially what a bounty is, here, since you're calling for them to be apprehended), it doesn't ever time out.  Just because you unlawfully evade law enforcement for a set amount of time doesn't mean you get to be "in the clear."

So the RL comparison isn't really there, even.  If you break the law and get caught doing it, you can expect to live as an outcast or work it out IC.  There are a lot of people who have done both of these things successfully, so don't feel discouraged.